


The Long Night

by White_Wolf31



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:53:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23897098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/White_Wolf31/pseuds/White_Wolf31
Summary: "Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?""That is the only time he can be brave," his father told him.The Dead are marching and the living prepare to meet it.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	The Long Night

**BAYARD**

_**“Y**_ our turn to take watch,” a voice called out, followed by a clap on Bayard’s shoulder. Bayard nodded and took a big swig from his goblet, ale spilled down his greying beard. He stood and threw on his black cloak followed by his black moleskin gloves. He had been a man of the Night’s Watch for ten years now and yet he had never got used to the cold. Taking watch was always his least favourite duty, he would stand a top the Wall staring off into the distance and would never see anything. Bayard only hated one more thing than the cold: the boredom.

Bayard braced himself as he opened the door from the hall and walked out into the snow. The weather had taken a turn for the worse since winter had begun. In-fact, Bayard could not remember a winter he hated more than this one. The sun was rarely seen, always hidden behind clouds or blizzards, the snow had fallen at abnormal rates and the wind grew stronger and colder each day. He thought that if he was some High Lord hidden behind castle walls, he would have been able to cope with the winter, but out here, on the Wall, there was no escape.

“Going up?” a fellow brother asked, drawing Bayard from his thoughts.

“Aye,” Bayard replied. “I wonder if today will be the day I throw myself off.”

The Night’s Watchman let out a bark of laughter. “If it is, I’ll make sure I burn your body.”

“Swear to it Heston!” Bayard called as he made the climb up the wooden steps that had been built into the ice.

It was hard climb, made harder by the strong winds that seemed to be fighting against you, almost as if they wanted you to fall. Once he reached the top he was greeted by a man with grey hair and a mess of a grey beard. He was dressed in heavy furs and various skins of animals, there was no sign of black. When the wildlings had first come to reinforce the Night’s Watch, he had had mixed feelings. Bayard had spent ten long years fighting the wildlings, doing everything he could to stop them crossing the Wall. He had seen them cut down his brothers, attack innocent people and even eat the flesh of the dead.

But now he was expected live alongside them, fight alongside them and trust that they would not put a knife in his back when he was not looking. Despite that part of him felt a sense of relief that it was just not up to the few men at Castle Black, Eastwatch and the Shadow Tower to fend off the White Walkers. Bayard simply nodded at the Wildling as he took his position on the Wall and cast his eyes out across the endless wasteland. Like he had predicted, he could see nothing.

He busied himself by tending to the fire, it was spitting embers, fighting to survive against the winds that were trying to put it out. Bayard added two more logs for good measure. The fire came back to life. Its warmth put a smile to Bayard’s face as he crouched next to it.

A raven landed on one of the watch towers that extended off the Wall. It gave a loud croak. The wilding was staring intently at the raven.

“It’ll fly off soon,” Bayard said as he stretched out his hands closer to the fire.

“There’s something wrong here,” the wildling muttered.

The Night’s Watchman gave him a disdainful smile. ‘Is there?”

“Can’t you feel it?” the wildling asked. “Listen to the darkness.”

Bayard stood up. He cast his eyes over the Wall. Once again, he saw nothing.

“All I can hear is that bloody bird,” he joked. The raven seemed to look up at Bayard. It croaked once more and stepped closer. Bayard looked down at it strangely. Finally, he had enough and swatted his hand out at the bird. But before he could even make contact with it the raven had flown away and landed next to the fire.

Croaking louder than before. Suddenly, a large gust of wind blew the fire out, and the raven with it. It became very cold and lonely atop the Wall. Bayard looked at the wildling, he now felt very afraid, although he wasn’t sure why. Instinctively his hand went to the hilt of his sword, something the wildling mirrored. Together they peered out over the edge of the Wall, the trees moved in the wind.

Or was it the wind? Bayard suddenly thought, despite the darkness of the sky he was sure he saw something then.

Almost at once his question was answered. A lone figure stumbled out of the forest. It walked a few paces and stopped. Bayard squinted. The figure looked up at the Wall, and even in the darkness Bayard could make out the blue of its eyes. “Sound the horns!” he bellowed. A horn blast echoed around Eastwatch, followed by another and then another. “Prepare yourselves!” he shouted at the few men on the Wall.

Bayard felt something pat at his arm, he turned and saw that the wildling was staring off into the distance, his face was etched with horror. A large blizzard had now taken over the forest. Figures were walking out of it in great number, all of them stopping after a few paces. Bayard drew his sword.

Hundreds of bodies were now lined up, all of their eyes looking up at the Wall. Bayard could feel the hairs on his next stand up, his hands were shaking with terror, and it only grew worse. Giants had now joined the line. In all of his time in the Watch Bayard had never seen a giant (not even when Mance Rayder had attacked) but now he was looking down at the humongous undead bodies of five of them. Their blue eyes were easier to make out.

More and more figures huddled together, Bayard could even see the bodies of undead Direwolves and bears. It truly was the largest army that he had ever seen in his life.

A rider made its way through the mass of bodies. It was different to the rest. Even just looking at it made Bayard’s heart cold.

It demounted and walked closer to the Wall. It had the shape of a man but was the colour of ice. It’s head snapped up. Bayard saw it’s eyes; blue, deeper and bluer than any others, a blue that made his knees shake.

Bayard felt as it the thing was staring at him and him alone.

The Other suddenly stopped and knelt in the snow. His hand was pressed hard against the earth. Bayard felt himself shake. ‘Bloody knees’ he thought. He shook once again, this time he realised the wildling next to him was shaking as well in fact the whole Wall was shaking.

The ice gave a loud rumble, it cracked, and shook. Before he had time to think, he ran. He darted for the steps, trying his best to ignore the loud cracks that echoed in his ears. Eastwatch had erupted into chaos. Bayard could make out men running, screaming words such as “fire, and brace.”

Something flew past Bayard’s face and it took him a moment to figure out what it was. For the first time he stopped running and looked up. Huge chunks of Wall were falling to the ground, destroying whatever they landed on. Bodies were falling from the top as well: the unlucky souls who weren’t quick enough.

Bayard quickly started running again. He shoved and pushed past the people in front of him. Oblivious of their screams.

Bayard could make out the ground below, when the Wall gave another deafening crack, he knew what he had to do. Bayard threw himself over the steps and when his legs met the hardness of the earth he was greeted with the sound of snapping.

He didn’t have long to wallow in pain because as he turned, he saw what he had escaped. Where Eastwatch had once stood was a ruin of ice and wood. Bodies lay littered across the earth, their faces unrecognisable.

Bayard wasn’t sure if they fell or if they had thrown themselves off.

The Night’s Watchman forced himself to stand on his broken leg. Through the newly created whole, bodies had started to appear. Their blue eyes were looking for any sign of living. A few brothers of the Night’s Watch met them; brandishing swords and torches.

Bayard did not.

Instead he went straight for the gate. Pain filled his body with each step, but he kept on going. The screams of his friends filled his ears, but he kept on going. Eventually, he made it to the forest that lay just south of the Wall.

Bayard stumbled and fell into the hardness of a tree trunk.

The woods were silent.

After a deep breath Bayard thought of his plan. He would hide here and wait for the dead to pass him and then he could get a horse from the Last Hearth and with that horse he could ride to his safety.

Safety and warmth.

He shrunk himself down to the ground and quietened his breath for the woods were silent no more. The dead moved slowly, the snow crunching beneath their feet. Bayard remained still, hidden behind the tree.

It was just now that he noticed the stench that they brought with them. He heard a low growl as he saw the body of a large wolf pass him. It was missing an ear and had a long cut across his body. Bayard felt his breeches grow wet. After what felt like hours the bodies started to grow smaller in number until, finally no more passed him.

Bayard waited.

He stood, his back still firmly against the tree. He listened carefully but heard nothing. Bayard let his face from a smile, and he moved from his hiding place.

Something cold grabbed his shoulder. He turned and saw the icy blue eyes of a walker. Before he could even let the smile fall from his face a blade was plunged into his gut. It felt cold and unnatural. Bayard slumped to the floor and felt no more.

His blood stained the snow. The walker sheathed its blade of ice and knelt by the body of its kill. It outstretched its hand and lay it against the face of the body. The body convulsed and twitched.

It stood. Picking up the sword that lay in the snow and followed the White Walker.

Bayard’s once brown eyes were now blue.

* * *


End file.
